The present invention relates to a glass run and a method of assembling a door glass on said glass run which is fittable along a frame of an automobile door for guiding the door glass lifting or lowering.
As shown in FIG. 8, an ordinary glass run 100 has been fit on a door sash (frame) 400 of a front door 200 and a rear door 300 of an automobile for guiding a door glass 9 lifting or lowering.
FIG. 9 shows the glass run 100 mounted on the front door 200 side. The glass run 100 comprises: a front side vertical edge part 11 and a rear side vertical edge part 12, which extend upward from an inner part of a door panel 200a of the front door 200; and a cross edge part 13 which connects upper ends of the two vertical edge parts 11, 12. The two vertical edge parts 11, 12 and the cross edge part 13 are generally formed by extrusion molding and connected with each other via two molded parts 14, 15.
The glass run 100 shown in FIGS. 10 and 11 has been well known, of which outer lip 6 is forked and which is applicable to the rear side vertical edge part 12.
The glass run 100 comprises a body 1 having a substantially U-shape in cross-section and has the ditch part 7 formed therein. The body 1 comprises two side walls, an inner-cabin side wall 2 and an outer-cabin side wall 3, and a connecting wall 4 which connects the inner-cabin side wall 2 and the outer-cabin side wall 3. The inner-cabin side wall 2 has an inner lip 5 formed on an inner surface as an outer-cabin side surface thereof, which extends toward the connecting wall 4 side. The outer-cabin side wall 3 has the forked outer lip 6 formed on an inner surface as an inner-cabin side surface thereof, which extends toward the inner-cabin side.
The outer lip 6 comprises an inner-attaching lip 6X and an outer-attaching lip 6Y. The inner-attaching lip 6X extends from the inner surface of an end of the outer-cabin side wall 3 toward the connecting wall 4 side and faces the inner lip 5 for fastening the door glass 9 in cooperation with the inner lip 5. The outer-attaching lip 6Y extends substantially perpendicularly to the inner-attaching lip 6X.
After the glass run 100 is assembled on the door sash 400, the door glass 9 is assembled into the ditch part 7 of the glass run 100 in the following manner. As the door glass 9 is guided into the ditch 7 of the glass run 100, abuts the inner-attaching lip 6X and is further guided into the ditch 7 to approach the connecting wall 4, the inner-attaching lip 6X turns in such a manner as to approach the outer-cabin side wall 3 around a notch 8 formed on the connecting wall 4 side of a base root of the inner-attaching lip 6X to be thin while the outer-attaching lip 6Y also turns in such a manner as to approach the door glass 9 side following the turn of the inner-attaching lip 6X. When the door glass 9 is fully guided into the ditch 7 of the glass run 100, as shown in FIG. 10, the outer-attaching lip 6Y as well as the inner-attaching lip 6X is slidably brought into contact with the outer-cabin side surface of the door glass 9. Resultant double sealing structure that the outer-attaching lip 6Y as well as the inner-attaching lip 6X is slidably brought into contact with the door glass 9 improves noise insulation function and water proof function. Such a structure is disclosed, for example, in the Japanese unexamined Patent Publication No. S62-88609.
When the outer-attaching lip 6Y is shorter than the inner-attaching lip 6X in cross section, there has remained a problem that, in case positional relation between the door glass 9 and the outer-attaching lip 6Y varies, a space generates between the door glass 9 and the outer-attaching lip 6Y even though the outer-attaching lip 6Y turns following the turn of the inner-attaching lip 6X when the door glass 9 is guided into the glass run 100. Also, even in case the outer-attaching lip 6Y abuts the door glass 9, when the load by the outer-attaching lip 6Y on the door glass 9 is insufficient, an excellent noise insulation function and water proof function are not performed.
On the other hand, when the outer-attaching lip 6Y is longer than the inner-attaching lip 6X in cross section, sufficient sealing property is secured. But as the door glass 9 is guided into the ditch 7 from a position 700 as shown in FIG. 11, the top end 6a of the outer-attaching lip 6Y may be drawn toward the connecting wall 4 side while guiding the door glass 9 as shown in FIG. 12 and assembling property of the door glass 9 may be degraded. Especially, in case the outer-attaching lip 6Y of the outer lip 6 fully touches the inner lip 5 even before the door glass 9 is guided into the ditch 7 of the glass run 100 as shown in FIG. 11, the door glass 9 is hardly guided (inserted) into the ditch 7 of the glass run 100.
As a result, on a position below a belt line 80 (FIG. 9) relative to the door 200 of the automobile, the top end of the outer-attaching lip 6Y has to be partially (range 1200 in FIG. 11) cut off for inserting (guiding) the door glass 9 into the glass run 100. Such a structure degrades productivity, heightens cost and degrades assembly workability of the door glass 9. On the other hand, in case the top end side of the outer-attaching lip 6Y is not partially cut off the door glass 9 has to be inserted by a jig exclusively for inserting the door glasses 9 in an assembly line. Such a structure has remained a problem of taking an extra manufacturing time.
In addition, the inner lip 5 extends toward the outer-cabin side wall 3 side from the inner-cabin side wall 2 side while being swelled and curved. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 11, when the door glass 9 is guided into the ditch 7 of the glass run 100 from a position 800, a base root of the inner lip 5 catches the door glass 9 and hampers smooth movement of the door glass 9.
According to the glass run 100 shown in FIGS. 10 to 12, since the notch 8 as a center of the turn of the inner-attaching lip 6X is formed on the connecting wall 4 side compared with the end on the outer-cabin side part of the door sash 400, which is on inner-cabin side of the outer-cabin side wall 3, when the door glass 9 is guided into the ditch 7, distance between the notch 8 and the door glass 9 guided into the ditch 7 of the glass run 100 is shortened. Accordingly, bending amount of the inner-attaching lip 6X can not be large, the outer-attaching lip 6Y can not follow the turn of the inner-attaching lip 6X and the load of the outer-attaching lip 6Y on the door glass 9 is small.
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a glass run excellent in noise insulation function and water proof function by preventing the outer lip from being drawn while guiding the door glass and improving the assembling property of the door glass.